


Savoir-faire

by posingasme



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Fallen Castiel, Fluff and stuff, Hunter Castiel, M/M, Oliver and Co prompt, Sastiel - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-01
Updated: 2017-01-01
Packaged: 2018-09-14 01:24:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,213
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9150592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/posingasme/pseuds/posingasme
Summary: Castiel is bad at interviewing witnesses. Very, horribly, terribly bad. Dean says some things about hunting can't be taught, and talking to people is one of them. But that's easy for Dean to say. He's got street smarts. Sam thinks Castiel might have something that will work just as well.(The song "Why Should I Worry?" by Billy Joel plays gently in the background.)





	

Dean was shaking his head and snickering.

Castiel tried to ignore him and instead focus on Sam's instructions.

“Look, Cas, if you're going to be a hunter, you need to develop some instincts.”

He frowned. “But aren't instincts...instinctive? How can they be taught? If I don't already have the kind a hunter needs…”

“It isn't-Instinct isn't the right word, I guess.” He looked at Dean, who was smirking at him, then sighed. “It's not that you lack the instinct to fight the bad guys, Cas. It's more that you lack the instinct-the skills-to talk to the good guys. And read the bad guys. And-”

“Yes,” Castiel sighed. “Interact with humans in general. I get it.”

Sam shrugged. “It's a matter of street smarts, Cas. And you've never needed to develop them.”

“Heaven has no streets. Nor has any battlefield I've ever encountered.”

Dean sat up straight on the couch finally. “Okay, Cas. We could teach you like our dad taught us,” he suggested.

The once and future angel nodded. “I'm a quick study,” he promised.

The brothers glanced at one another as though they were unsure.

Castiel frowned. “Sam, I know I'm short on experience, but I have the mental capacity to-”

“I know! I know, Cas. Of course you do.”

They both ignored Dean's snort.

Sam tucked his hair behind one ear and nodded. “Okay. John Winchester's training manual? Because that was so much fun for us?”

“Ain't about fun, Sammy. It's about not dying. About saving people and hunting evil crap.”

“Yeah, I've read the bumper sticker,” Sam snapped. He looked back at Castiel, who watched him with interest. “No,” he decided. “No, Dad’s methods aren't going to work for Cas. The guy already knows how to fight. He breaks shit just fine. And it isn't like he can't take a hit.”

“That isn't all there is to hunting. Dad taught us more than that.”

“And a lot of it we picked up on our own along the way. Come on, man! I'm not going to let you go all Miyagi on Cas.”

Dean laughed. “Why not? My car could use a wax.”

Castiel wasn't sure why Sam glared at him, but he waited patiently for the two of them to work out this confusing conversation.

“Sammy, street smarts, they're earned. You can't teach them! Best we can do is do for him what Dad did for us, see if any of it sticks.”

But Sam turned away from his brother to look at Castiel. “Cas, you don't need to develop a whole other personality. You just need to be able to play it, like Dean and I do.”

“Savoir-faire.”

The humans blinked at him. “What?” they both said.

Castiel cleared his throat. “Knowing how to act in certain social situations. Balthazar always told me I was particularly bad at it.”

As Dean began to laugh again, Sam scowled and took Castiel's arm to lead him away. “Cas, look. It never came quite naturally to me either, until I figured out how to use what I already have in order to make it work.”

His head tipped, and he gazed in fond curiosity at Sam. He suspected Dean would never have admitted such a thing. “What do you mean?”

Sam took a breath. “One of the most important things you’ve got to do as a hunter is the witness interview.”

“Yes. That is what I’m particularly poor at.”

The hunter shrugged, but nodded. “Because you’re looking at it all wrong. Like I used to. It used to be Dad’s thing, you know? I researched. Dean shadowed Dad. And Dad talked to people. Dean learned to read people, learned to piece the puzzles together. And he’s damn good at it. But his method rarely works for me. I can remember the way Dad would look into someone’s eyes, and make them believe he could see into their soul. They didn’t bother lying to him. Dean, of course, always assumes everyone is lying.”

Castiel sighed. “I like to assume no one is.”

“Okay, but between Dean’s paranoia and your trusting nature is a compromise. You can be on your guard without being intimidating.”

Admiration shone in his eyes as he stared up at Sam. “And how do you do it, Sam?”

“I use what I do best, Cas. I care about people. And I let them know I care about them. You care about humans too. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be here. Right? When you’re talking to witnesses, Cas, you just have to let yourself feel what they’re feeling. Empathy is more important than anything when you’re learning about a traumatic event in someone’s life. And even if it’s something you’ve seen a hundred times, you got to remember it’s the first time it’s happened to this person. You have to narrow your whole world down to that person and what they’ve experienced. Once I figured that out, it was easy. Not-not easy, I guess, but easier. I just let compassion take over, and I listen. People will tell you what you need to know, when you truly listen with your heart. They reveal themselves, for better or worse, and then you can act on what you’ve learned.”

A rush of affection for this human flooded his whole vessel, and he took a step forward. “There are times when I can’t help narrowing my whole world until you’re the only being that matters, Sam.”

Pink flushed Sam’s throat, and he let his hair fall in front of his eyes as he ducked his head. “No, I mean...With the witness. That’s…”

“I understand,” Castiel said softly. “And, Sam, compassion and empathy _is_ truly what you do best. It’s what I love about you most. And I will seek to emulate it when I’m speaking with witnesses. I promise. But there will never be a time when I want to listen to anyone with my heart so much as you. I appreciate that Dean is willing to teach me his methods, his street savoir-faire. He certainly has it all mastered himself. I’ve never known a man who has quite so much confidence in such a wide range of circumstances as he has. But, Sam, I think I prefer your way. It suits me best. Dean’s methods require me to be someone I’m truly not. Yours will allow me to show that I genuinely care about helping people.”

Sam nodded, and took Castiel’s hand. “Dean’s the greatest hunter of all time, Castiel. There’s no denying that. His way works. And he cares about people too. He really does. But-”

“But I want to learn to listen with my heart, not worry about fitting in, about how to act. So long as my focus is on listening and empathizing, the rest may follow?”

“It should. It’s always worked for me. And don’t forget the power of the puppy eyes,” he teased gently.

Castiel’s gaze opened wide, and he blinked slowly while concentrating on how much he would like Sam to lean down to kiss him.

“Wow. Dean’s right. Some things can’t be taught. And you’ve got nothing to worry about with those weapons.” He touched their lips together, and made the ancient creature grin.

“Why should I worry?” Castiel smirked. “I’ve got street savoir-faire.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are loved and snuggled like little orange kittens.
> 
> ~Posing


End file.
